I've walked most of the Appalachian Trail...its ups and downs are a lot like life. I love life, but EMT work has taught me that life is uncertain for us all. Let's talk about how to make the world work. There's lots of people who've got to live with what we leave behind.

Friday, May 15, 2009

The Costly Hike, and Dumping on Democrats

I'm back. It took me 14 hours of hiking to cover the 23 miles of Massachusetts "Birkshires" that I needed to clean up. Unfortunately, I had to drive 9 hours and spend $175 to make it happen.

Thursday I did the 14 miles up and down Mt. Greylock, which is a serious mountain. It drizzed or rained all but two hours, and the winds gusted up to 60 miles per hour. Fortunately, the mountain is tree-covered except for the summit, so I didn't get blown off it. Also, the rain was cold, so all the energy I put into climbing and descending went into keeping me warm instead of creating an ocean of sweat.

This morning I raced the 9 or 10 miles into Dalton, Massachusetts, completing this pretty easy section in 4.5 hours so I could get back to my car and drive home in the afternoon. How did I get back to my car? Easy. There's an older guy in Dalton named "Tom" who makes a career out of helping AT hikers. I just knocked on his front door, introduced myself, and asked him to take me back to my car. Ten minutes later we were on our way. Gratis. Tom wouldn't take cash, gas for his car, or my offer to add to his personal "fund for desperate hikers". Don't tell me there aren't a lot of really good people out there; "Tom" is one of them.

I watched Pelosi's lame explanation of her non-awareness of the Bush torture program. Nancy doesn't do much for me. In fact, neither Reed nor Pelosi seem up to the jobs they hold. What is it about the democratic party? Without Obama they'd be lost.